Bullies and Black Eyes

When your child comes home with a black eye, you start to worry about bullies. When your child tells you a rambling incoherent story about how he came-by this black eye you realize (once again) that your son is his own bully/his own worst nightmare. Seriously!





Fun with Eva's hair


Kids at Four Corners Monument

Hovenweep National Monument (Thomas took this picture!)

Hovenweep National Monument (Eva took this picture!)

Million-dollar Mom

For all you ladies out there who have a hard time fitting in a workout, this is for you!

Years ago when I did my first Body-for-Life Challenge, there was an AWESOME magizine called Energy for Women. It was a fitness magazine unlike the rest. The cover always showed a healthy fit woman (rather than an imaciated model that most of us could never look like). It set a higher standard of fitness, and only allowed advertising from proven healthcare companies. You knew you could trust what was in the magazine from articles to advertising. When Bill Phillips, founder of Body-for-Life sold his supplement company EAS, (which was the parent company of Energy for Women) the new owner stopped publishing the magazine:(

I loved many of the workouts from the magazine, so I cut them out and kept them in a binder. When Nancy asked if anyone knew of some effective, quick workouts, I found my binder and looked through it, so here is "Million-dollar Mom" from Energy for Women (forgive the poor quality of the photos, my scanner is horrible!)

"You're up and running from the minute your youngest child hurdles himself/herself onto your bed in the morning, until the second your dog demands one last round in the backyard at night. Your daily life is a triathlon. Still, lifting children, carrying groceries and running around does not seem to provide the strength and energy you need.

YOUR GOAL: To increase energy, stamina and strength for your daily tasks without spending long hours in the gym.

YOUR WORKOUT: For maximum results in minimum time, choose compound exercises -- those that challenge more than one muscle at a time, recommends Frank Mikulka, a personal trainer at Long Island's Hollywood Atrium. And "superset" exercise pairs -- alternating between sets of two different exercises rather than resting between sets of one. Mikulka suggests focusing on core and upper body strength to help ease the load (literally) of your daily chores. Try this routine

8 STABILITY BALL SQUAT-TO-LATERAL ARM RAISES:

Place a stability ball between your back and the wall. Squat until your thighs are parallel with the floor. Hold while doing 10 lateral arm raises. Do three sets of 10 arm reps each.

9 PUSH-UPS/TRICEPS CHAIR DIPS:

Do a set of standard push-ups. Follow with a set of triceps dips off a chair or bench. Do three sets of each, alternating between sets of five to 10 push-ups, and 10 to 15 triceps dips.

10 BACK ROWS/STANDING BICEPS CURLS:

Do a set of back rows, followed by a set of standing biceps curls. Do three sets, 10 to 15 reps each

11 CALVE RAISES-TO-SHOULDER PRESSES:

Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Do a calve raise. Immediately raise arms and go into a shoulder press. Do three sets, 10 to 20 reps each.

Debbie E Mandel, who runs mind/body workshops in New York and is the author of Turn on Your Inner Light: Recipes for Health, Happiness and Fitness, suggests incorporating muscle challenges into your daily routine. Do calve raises while waiting in the checkout line at the grocery store, for example, and rear leg lifts while pushing a stroller." --Energy For Women Jan/Feb 03

Hope some of you find this helpful!

Nancy Inspires Me

Sometimes I need a little outside motivation to help me carry through on promises I make to myself. A few months ago, this motivation came from my Sister-in-law Kim and her Walking Blog. Thanks Kim! More recently my motivation/inspiration was from my other Sis-in-law Nancy. When I saw her fitness blog it was what I needed to get serious about setting and achieving my fitness goals. For 2 weeks now I have been lifting weights and running. I enjoyed having Nancy home over the weekend because we were able to talk fitness together (which helped keep me motivated). I have not been perfect, I still have a hard time staying faithful to my diet, and procrastinating workouts has meant that some days I have done cardio and weights on the same day, but I AM moving forward!
Some things that have helped me: Each night I try to journal how my day went. I write down what things I did well and what I need to work on. I write down what I ate (which helps me be honest with myself, this is where I really struggle to be good). Then I plan the next day: What I will eat, when I will workout, and small goals for the day. (Some nights I have to journal for several days--like I said, I am not perfect!)
I have been focusing on my small victories: Doing abs daily, taking my vitamins daily, drinking enough water. I celebrate these small victories because I know that they are all steps in the right direction.
Several years ago I had the pleasure of a "workout buddy" she became my best friend, my other sister. In the time we worked out together I never missed a workout because I knew she was counting on me to be there. Her dedication helped me be dedicated. When she married Tim and moved away I lost my motivation and stopped working out. I miss you Nancy! I finally found another "workout buddy"--Eva. She has agreed to help keep me encouraged to get up in the morning and go running. She needs the one-on-one time with me, and I need her forcing me out of bed when I just want to sleep.
Nancy, keep up your fitness blog, keep working out. I will be your "virtual workout buddy" when you need motivated. Thank-you for inspiring me!

Thomas is Seven!

A couple of weeks ago we celebrated Thomas' 7th birthday! He had a Sponge-bob party that was lots of fun. Eva got him his first MP3 player. It is funny how grown-up he seems walking around with it. I didn't know what kind of music to put on it, so my Sister-in-law Brenda suggested we put Brian Regan the comedian on it. Great suggestion! I put music on that I thought he might like, but every time I can hear his MP3 player it is Brian Regan that he is listening to. The week of Thomas's birthday was his all about me week. He is really into planes right now, so we made his poster in the shape of a plane. We thought it was pretty cool.

We call Timothy the Nightmare Boy because lately he is getting into everything! He looks at you with a wicked gleam in his eye and then does something bad like throw something hard at you, or run away from you when you are trying to change his poopy diaper. He loves to drive Eva and Thomas crazy. He definitely has the annoying little brother thing figured out.

Timothy loves to put on Thomas's bike helmet and walk around with it weighing his head down.

Eva is enjoying the after school program at the museum (where I work). It is called Art-n-Facts (like artifacts) and they learn all sorts of cool cultural things. She stresses out over math at school, but is doing well otherwise.

I have been inspired by Nancy and have set my 12 week goals, and have started working out again. Thanks Nancy!

10 years and other nonsense

It's official, I have worked at Edge of the Cedars for 10 years now as the Museum Store Manager. At times I have questioned if my loyalty has been rewarded or recognized, but the honest reality is what other employer would let you work a flexible work-week under 30 hours, and still give you full benefits? None in Blanding, that is for sure. I recently ran some sales figures for my region manager to determine if our decline in visitation has lead to a decline in sales. While I have experienced a 10-20 % decline in visitation, I have actually produced a 20% or more increase in sales! Of course, the true test of how well you are doing is sales per visitor. For my industry (museum stores) we strive for an average of $2.00 per visitor. Well for the first half of the year my average sales per visitor was nearly $5.00 per visitor! It is rewarding to see the effects of my hard work in a concrete way like that.

Because I Passionately Love My Wife and Would Do Anything for Her

It's Claydar's turn to Post!!

Kd and the kids went to Lake Powell with Nan and Britt on Friday. Of course I got left home alone. There was no food, no TV, and my Xbox was broken. So there I was alone, hungry, bored and a little scared. Hmmm Canyon Country is just down the street. I should go get some food! So I go and get a Valencia Orange juice and a bag of Carmel popcorn. That was my dinner. Obviously I'm not gifted in the art of making important decisions at critical times. I get home and realize that I'm still going to be hungry so I nuke some delicious pizza pockets and sit down to watch season 3 of Battle Star Gallactica. I sat there for3 hours and watched like 4 episodes. I then went to bed and read an Orson Scott Card novel for 2 more hours until 2:30 am at which point I decided that I should go to sleep. Needless to say I 'm still trying to catch up.

Kd and the kids had a great time at the lake. I'll defer to her to give the details....maybe on her next post.

My garden is doing well. I have some tomatoes, corn, peas and squash. The weeds are somewhat under control and most of the plants are alive. I've been able to cut my mowing time down to just under 1 hour a week not including edging and I'm loving the sprinkler system. Our new yard is great and I'm really enjoying the process of taking care of it. I just wish I didn't suffer from allergies.

Our cherry tree produced tons of fruit and it turns out that they are pretty good. I was worried that they were going to be not so sweet pie cherries, but they are actually pretty good. The only draw back to the cherry tree is the constant sticky floor from tracked in cherries.



Timothy is a full fledged walker now. He gets so happy and loves his new skills. It's crazy to see such a tiny boy walking and running around. His first word was "Eva". He now can say "Eye" while jabbing his little finger into your eye socket, and he's learning to imitate a lot of actions and sounds. It's so fun to watch my kids grow. I love them so much.

Now about the title. I asked Kd for suggestions on what to post. The Title is her suggestion. Honestly...What would I be without Kd? Where would I be? I can't imagine life without her. I love my kids so much and would do anything for them. Without Kd I wouldn't have the kids that I have. She completes my life. I love her so much.



She will read this in the morning and think, "yeah...I told him to write that," or "whatever!" Kd it's true I do love you and I missed you when you went to Lake Powell. I know it was only one night but I was sad, and hungry, and really bored. Most of all I was so glad to see you and the children come home ( the CHILDREN...).



Here's a few more pictures for your viewing pleasure......

Kd likes to have he picture taken

Thomas smiles

Sun Bathing Cousins

Timothy looks on

At Cottonwood wash

Fully Converted

I have been thinking a lot lately about what it means to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, what a testimony of the gospel is, and how important it is to be truly converted. I know many people who claim membership in the LDS church, and belive it to be true, yet they choose not to live the gospel to the fullest. I have been there myself, whether it be not paying a full tithe, not going to all your Sunday meetings, or other things that keep us from being "fully converted". In the gospel of Jesus Christ, it is not enough to just "believe" the church is true. We must start with, faith, then show our obedience by acting on that faith. As members of the church we truly believe that, "faith without works is dead". It is so important to have a testimony as a starting point for the gospel. I know this church is true, and that it is lead by a righteous prophet. I know that Joseph Smith truly did see Heavenly Father and Jesus, and that he is a true prophet who restored the true church on the earth. I know that Jesus lives, and that he died for my sins, so that I can return to live with him again if I choose to live worthy and repent of my wrongs. That is my testimony. I act on my testimony by living a clean life and fully participating in all my church meetings and accepting and performing my church callings. I attend the Temple at least once a month if not weekly. I do not make excuses for my failings. I am not perfect, but I act on what I believe. That is what it means to be fully converted. My testimony of the gospel is the driving force in my life and that is why I am who I am, and why my life is blessed. I am grateful for righteous examples in my life that have helped me make wise choices and fully live the gospel.